The Last of the Dragons
by Oni Tsubasa
Summary: Ryu Darca lost his parents when he was born and was raised as a friend for Princess Nina. He then became her bodyguard when he was older. When she decided to go visit her people, something happens on the way. They are then sent into an adventure to find t
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own Breath of Fire or any of its characters. Some of the characters are my own though.

The Last of the Dragons

Prologue

Thousands of years before, the world was much more peaceful. The many tribes and nations lived together without war and death. The strongest of the tribes, the dragons, kept the other tribes from attacking each other. It was peaceful, but could never last.

Soon, an unknown organization began wreaking havoc upon the land. They captured children from each of the tribes and made them grow up in slavery and endless pain. They were trained to become weapons of war. The tribe to lose the most of their children were the dragons, who looked like humans but who had the ability to become the fabled creatures. Using the dragons' strength, the organization slowly began taking over all of the planet. It looked like they could not be beaten, until a young warrior released the dragons who killed their tormentors, but with great costs to their own people.

The dragons nearly died out over the years, until there were but a few left. What was left of the organization took all but a small family of dragons, who would soon have their first child.

They traveled through the harsh winter until they arrived at Wyndia, the home of the Wyndians. The husband died from the cold and the mother soon went into labour, where she gave birth to a blue-haired baby boy, Ryu. The mother died soon after, and the loving royal family took the boy in to become a guard to their soon to be born daughter, Nina.

Our story starts many years after, when Ryu is 19 and Nina is 18.


	2. The Beginning of Death

Disclaimer: I do not own Breath of Fire or any of it's characters or places. Some of the characters in this story do belong to me though.

The Last of the Dragons

Chapter 1: The Beginning of Death

Ryu sighed. He had been practicing with his sword and bow all day long and now he was getting tired. He was a very good swordsman but not so good of a shot with a bow. He was the only person out of all the guards to be practicing this day, their day off, when they could go visit their family. Ryu kept practicing because he had no family, for the people at the castle **were** his family, the castle his home. His father had died before he was born and his mother had died after giving birth. He had been taken in by the royal family and had become a "playmate" to the princess Nina. Even though he was her playmate, he was never allowed to call her just Nina, even after all her pleas. At the age of eight, he had been given to the master guard to train and then become Nina's bodyguard.

When someone became eight in Wyndia, they would be then trained for their future career. Even if they had wished it, Ryu could not have been a "playmate" forever. Even if he was not Wyndian, he still had to abide by their rules, and playmate was not a career. Nina herself had been trained to become queen, which was her duty. Ryu at least could then stay near her as a bodyguard.

For eleven long years, he had learnt to wield a sword very well and had been taught to be proficient with a bow. He gained friends in the training, two Wyndian boys named Damien and Ardan. They would become royal guards, who would protect the royal family, while he, would protect Nina.

His master and teacher, Krikun Mard, was the best swordsman the world had seen since the dragons died out. He was not only his teacher but was also the leader of the royal guards, trainer of the royal guards, and if need be, general of the Wyndian army.

Ryu sighed again as he slashed through another human-shaped target, cleaving it in two. Yes, his life had been very repetitive and boring, but it was all he had ever known, and he did everything to the best of his ability, and he was very good at what he did, even if he would never admit it.

Ryu was not a Wyndian, nor did he look much like one. He had shoulder length blue hair, great big, green eyes that some say shone like emeralds. He had a handsome enough face that many women had swooned over. He had large muscles that was gained from training which the women found very appealing also. He always wore the same clothes though. He wore a white t-shirt, with a green vest, blue pants, and regular working boots. His face may have looked good when he was **forced **to wear good clothes for special occasions, but when he had his normal clothes on, women were not as keen to fall for him. Though many still did.

Ryu was very shy and not very social, so he didn't have as much experience with girls as the other guards did, which, occasionally, got him into some trouble. His friends had before tried to set him up on a date with a pretty enough girl who liked how he looked as well, but he was too shy to really say much because she had been wearing a low-cut, tight dress, and had bent over a lot. He mostly through the whole dinner gazed at his plate and whispered incoherent things. The date did not go well and each time he saw her he hid.

He didn't leave the castle much and left the training grounds less but he still was able to get everything he needed, like food. Even though he lived in the castle, and was of course offered to eat at the guard's dining room, and the female area as well, he did not like always taking advantage of the royal family's hospitality so he would buy his own food, cook it, then eat it all by himself in his room, the training arena, or in the courtyard.

The courtyard was one of his favourite places to be. It was a large area in the middle of the castle that was filled with trees, flowers, a small pond, and a very nice hedge maze, where in the middle was a small area with a fountain and a few benches. There were also, actual animals in there. There were birds, rabbits, fish in the small pond, frogs, and the various animals that were kept around the castle as pets, like cats. When he would eat there, he would usually eat in the centre of the maze, since he had memorized the maze, it was easy for him to get there.

Ryu groaned and flopped down onto the ground. Lying on the ground, he stared up in the sky, where he saw Wyndians, young and old, male and female, flying through the clouds. He was a human and did not have wings like the Wyndians did, so he had never known the sky. But as he lay on the ground, fingers running through his shoulder length blue-hair, emerald green eyes staring up to the sky, he drifted off to sleep, dreaming of flying through the sky with his large white wings, with the Princess Nina flying beside him, smiling sweetly.

Ryu felt something shaking him. He groaned and rolled over, still asleep, dreaming of just him and Nina. He felt something honk his nose, waking him up, only to find himself suddenly staring up at the large blue eyes of the object of his dreams, Nina Wyndia, princess of Wyndia. He screamed out which caused Nina to scream out as well and fall on top of him. When he opened his eyes again, he saw Nina's lips less than an inch from his face. He went beet red and tried to move.

When Nina's head stopped spinning she looked down and saw Ryu right at her face. She went red as well and mumbled sorry while getting off him.

Ryu gazed at his childhood friend. She had long blonde hair that went to the middle of her back and large, blue eyes. Her face was small and very pretty. She was also about a head shorter than him. She wore a long blue dress, reaching to her ankles that went well with her eyes. Her beautiful white wings were coming out of two holes in the dress. Her body was quite curvaceous, and voluptuous, and as Ryu thought this, his face went slightly redder and he shook his head to rid himself of any, less than proper thoughts for the woman he was supposed to protect.

"Umm. Princess Nina, what are you doing out here? Should you not be studying or practicing your magic?"

"Ah Ryu, call me just Nina, I've asked you billions of times." She asked this rather whiningly.

"I'm sorry, **Princess **Nina, but my duty is to protect you and a person such as me is not allowed to address one such as you in such a way."

Nina harumphed and stared at him. "So why are you practicing still? It's your day off and there are better things you could be doing, rather than training, like..."

"Like?"

"Going to town with me!"

Ryu looked rather stone-faced. "But princess..."

"No buts. You're coming with me and that is an order." Se said the last five words while poking him in the chest.

Ryu sighed. "As you wish." Nina giggled slightly. He bowed to her and held out his hand in the direction of the town.

Ryu and Nina went into the town to get some of Nina's shopping done. They also went into town to visit the townspeople, as a way of saying that the royal family cared for the people. They first stopped off at a clothing store that specialized in lingerie. When Ryu saw this was their first store, his face went blood red and started stammering.

"Um.. Umm.. Prin.. Princes... Princess Nin... Nina. This is... is a umm... store for.. lingerie." His voice dropped to a whisper as he said the last word.

Nina giggled. "Yes it is."

"I.. I can't go in there! I'm.. I'm a, umm... guy!"

Nina giggled even harder. "Now Ryu, don't tell me you've never gone in a lingerie store before." Ryu shook his head. "You haven't? Well then, I guess this will be an educational experience for you." Nina giggled all the harder as she dragged a beet red, scared-looking Ryu into the store. She looked back to him. "Now Ryu, don't tell me you don't want to see me in nothing but my underwear."

If possible, Ryu's face was getting even redder. "Well.. Umm... Ah... That.."

Nina burst out laughing. "Just wait here." She said with a smile on her face.

Nina picked out some things and went to change. The whole time she was changing Ryu's face was getting redder thinking about her in some of the things he saw her pick up. While waiting for her to come out, the girls in the store saw him and started hitting on him.

One girl walked up to him and rubbed his chest, causing his face to, once again, redden. "Hey baby, what are you doing in a place like this?" She asked, trailing her fingers around his chest.

"I... Umm... Here... Princess... Uh... Well... that is.. umm.. Nina... Help.." He said the last word in a whisper.

Other girls, seeing him walked up to him and began stroking him or feeling him. At that moment, Nina walked out of the dressing room with everything she wanted, when she saw a beet red Ryu, surrounded by cooing females, she felt her temperature rise. She walked over to him and grabbed his ear and pulled him to the cashier.

After paying for her things, Nina dragged him outside and looked at him sternly. "What were you doing with all those females in there Ryu?"

"GASP! WHEEZE! Those girls were insane! They just came over and started suffocating me! They were all like, 'hi,' and, 'lets go somewhere, quiet.' I couldn't breathe! There should be a law that does not allow men to go into those stores." Ryu stod there panting which caused Nina to giggle as she looked at her purplish-red coloured friend's face.

"Come on," she giggled. "We have more shops to go to."

"But why don't you get your maids and stuff to get these things?" He asked pleadingly. "Instead of dragging me out here to nearly get killed by single women."

"Because I like shopping and this was too funny to pass up. Now come on, we have more shops to hit."

For the rest of the day, the two of them hit less, embarassing stores. Nina persuaded Ryu to get dinner at a bar on the far side of town. When they got there, Ryu looked up at and paled then reddened at what he saw. There was a sign saying, "Singles Bar."

Ryu started to stutter about having to go train some more as the thought of the women in the lingerie store came back to him.

"Oh no you don't. Come on, let's go." Nina said as she pushed Ryu through the swinging doors leading into the bar.

When they got inside, Ryu glanced around nervously at the tables, trying to find of the women from the store so he could avoid them. He saw the girl that had come up to him and began to stroke his chest, slowly trailing her fingers along an already smitten Wyndian.

He ducked behind Nina as she walked past the table so he wouldn't be seen by the woman, who turned around after hearing a gasp of surprise that came from Ryu when he saw her. She shrugged it off as she only saw a Wyndian girl with what looked like a hump walk by her.

When they finally got to an empty table, they sat down and Ryu grabbed a menu, hiding behind it, looking scared. Nina shook her head and pushed the menu down, resulting in a gasp from Ryu. He quickly looked around, and, seeing no one looking, relaxed, causing a few more giggles to come from Nina.

"Hey Ryu?" Ryu glanced up. "Remember when me and you would get chased out of bars and taverns when we were little?"

Ryu closed his eyes thinking, then a smile came to his face. "Yeah. We would come into the bars and ask the bartender for something strong. One actually almost gave it to us for he hadn't looked up at us before he saw we were just little kids, where then he chased us out with a broom, yelling, 'Get out of here ya crazy kids, before I tell yur parents about this!'" Nina giggled at his impersonation of th bartender. "Now we can actually order drinks." That being said, he ordered Nina a wine and himself an ale.

"Those were fun times, don't you think? Before you were taken and trained to be a guard." When she said the last part her face became sullen and she grabbed her wine and walked away from the table. Ryu looked confused but grabbed his ale as he followed her out the door.

"Yeah, those were fun times, but now, I am a soldier. And I can't be being chased out of bars with my friends anymore." Ryu sighed. "Hey Princess Nina?"

"Yeah? What is it?" She asked as she sipped her wine.

"What is it like to have parents?"

Nina was not expecting a question like this so she swallowed too much wine and began coughing. When her coughing fit was over she looked at him. "What kind of question is that?"

"Well I'm just asking you because I never had parents."

"Oh. I'm sorry, I kind of forgot. Well it might not be the same for everyone but for me it is sort of like, hmm. How should I put this? It's kind of like having people who care for your well-being, and your interests, and your life. My parents are extremely kind, especially my mother." When she said her mother her face went dark and tears started to form in her eyes which she tried to hide by making her hair fall over her face.

Ryu saw this though. "Princess Nina, what is wrong?" When she didn't reply he reached out and moved her bangs from her face. "Nina, what's wrong?"

Nina heard him say her name without her title and she looked up at him, teary eyed and sniffeling. "Ryu, my mother is sick."

Ryu was taken aback when he heard her mother, Elina Wyndia, the queen of Wyndia, was sick. She was the one who had originally taken him in, knowing that she was pregnant and it would be good for her child to have a friend. She was always so kind and loving, not caring if it was servants or the highest of nobles, she would always talk to them the same way, with the same voice, and always listening to them. She was the closest thing he had to a mother and it struck him a hard blow. "What.. What's wrong with her?" He asked with a scared voice.

"She has a disease that's called Maorian Disease. It quickly shuts down all systems, and it can start in any organ, and spreads too quickly so it is impossible to cure." She began to cry and Ryu could only put his arm around her, bringing her to his shoulder to cry on.

"It'll be alright. Don't cry. It'll be alright." Even as he said this he knew it was not true and that Elina was going to die.

Several days passed until Elina Wyndia, queen of Wyndia, died. A huge funeral ceremony was orchestrated for her by King Torijin Wyndia, her loving husband, and Nina's father.

The ceremony went for two days and there was not a dryface in sight. There was then a huge banquet at the end to signal a good afterlife to the departed. She was then buried inside the royal tomb, and was soon only a memory.

Even though Elina had died several days before, Nina was still extremely sad. She had not left her room since the burial and people were getting worried. The only way they knew she was still alive, was from the fact that everyone could hear her crying.

Ryu was himself becoming sad from the way his best friend was acting and he one day went to her room and knocked. "Princess Nina! Please open the door!"

All he could hear was sobbing from the other side which made his heart cry out. "Nina, please open the door. I ask this not as your guard, but as your friend." Ryu waited a few seconds until he heard the door unlock. The door opened and he found himsel face-to-face with a red-eyed Nina on the bed. He was not sure how she had managed to unlock the door, but he didn't care. He walked over to her bed and sat beside her.

When he did, Nina flung herself on him and cried heavily on his shoulder. He patted her on the back and silently whispered to her.

They stayed this way for a few minutes until Nina pushed herself from his shoulder and gazed up at him. "Ryu," she sniffled. "She's gone. She's gone and is never coming back. I miss her already."

"I know. I miss her too. She was like a mother to me, never talking down, and always talking to me as if I were her equal. She was a special woman, and traits from her have gone to you. Just remember that she would not want you to waste your life away, and she would want you to help people."

Nina stared at him. He was so stern sometimes, but other times, he was the nicest person alive. She snuggled up to him, causing him to redden slightly and nervously laugh. "Nina, let's go get some food."

"I'm not really hungry right now Ryu." Which was a complete and utter lie for she hasdn't eaten for a while but she didn't want to move from this position.

"I know that's a lie, you haven't eaten in two days. Now either you come with me to get some food, or I'll carry you and force-feed you."

Nina giggled. "You can always cheer me up Ryu. No matter how bad of a mood I'm in." She stood up. "Let's get something to eat. I **am **starving."

Ryu laughed and walked with his friend out the door and to the dining area.

* * *

Well, what do you think? If it can be improved or is fine the way it is, then please review.

Oni Tsubasa


	3. The Beginning of the Journey

The Last of the Dragons

Chapter 2: The Beginning of the Journey

After Nina's mother had died, the whole kingdom of Wyndia became depressed. No one's heart's were in their jobs as much and everything was going down hill. But no one was more devastated than King Torijin, soon after she died, he became 'ill' and would not leave his room to go do his royal duties. All the duties were transferred to Nina meaning she couldn't leave the castle at all.

While all this happened, Ryu's training still continued, and as the day of graduation for the guards came closer, training began heating up.

Ryu ducked under Damien's sword then thrust his blade upwards. It was blocked so he quickly rolled out of the way, nearly getting hit by Ardan's spear. He quickly stood up and knocked Ardan's weapon out of the way, and closed in for the 'kill'. He placed the blade at his throat, signaling he had defeated him to nearly get cut by the still going Damien. Ryu jumped out of the way and quickly jumped and thrust his blade, only to be blocked by Damien's sword once again. Caught in a sword-lock, they began trying to force each other backwards.

Even though Ryu was strong, Damien was still stronger, and he pushed Ryu back, causing him to nearly fall on his back. He quickly recovered and rolled forward, under Damien's sword, whare he then thrust his blade under Damien's chin, smiling victoriously. "I win."

Damien growled but lowered his blade and resheathed it. Ryu stood up and smiled again while resheathing his own. "How could you have beaten us at two-on-one Ryu?" Asked a voice to the side.

Ryu looked over to the heavily muscled, spear-wielding Ardan. His friend had short blonde-hair with brown eyes. He was wearing the typical guard's outfit. A brown leather helmet, a brown vest, a white shirt, brown pants and brown leather boots. The shirt and vest were built to accomodate the wings of a Wyndian, so there were two large holes in the back of both.

He glanced to his other friend, Damien, who was Ardan's twin brother and wearing the exact same clothes so it was hard to tell who they were. The easiest way was to look at their weapons. Ardan wielded a spear while his brother carried a sword.

"Well Ardan, it's because all I do is train, meaning I know a lot more maneuvers and am much more athletic than either of you."

"Well you don't have to rub it in," sighed Damien.

"Who cares, tonight, we graduate, and then go to our roles for the rest of our life." Ryu replied.

"Yeah, and then you'll be with your princess all the time." Ardan smiled mischeviously. "I don't even want to know what you two will be doing."

Ryu's face reddened slightly. "I.. I won't be doing noth.. I mean anything. She.. She is the princess.. and it's my du..duty to protect her."

Damien smiled like his brother. "Sure, sure. And at night, you'll be doing something else, won't you?"

Ryu's face reddened completely. "I won't do anything except sleep."

"By her side?" Ardan questioned.

"No! My duty is to protect her and that's what I'll do. That's **all **I'll be doing. Nothing else. " Ryu's voice dropped. "Besides, she's a princess, and I'm just.."

"Her bodyguard?"

"I'm just a nobody. I have no family, no royal background. Hell. I don't even have a noble background. I'm pretty much just a servant." Ryu sighed. "And that's all I'll ever be able to be." He sighed again. "Come on, it's time."

He walked off with the two brothers looking at his back with saddened looks on their faces. They shrugged their shoulders and walked after him.

The time had finally come for the guards-in-training to become true guards. They were the best of the best and the time had finally come.

A man walked up to a podium on a stage on the far side of the stadium attached to the training arena. It was a large stadium that could hold over five-thousand people, and was nearly filled with Wyndians, humans and any other race that lived in Wyndia. On the ground were all the recruits who had successfully completed all their training and were ready to graduate. There were about thirty graduates, Ryu included.

The man cleared his throat and began talking. "Welcome all graduates and people of Wyndia. Today, we are here to congratulate everyone who has completed all their training and who are ready to begin their duties." He waited until the applause died down. "Now when I say your name, come up to the stage and receive your assignments and my congratulations. Now come up, Damien Arte." Damien walked up, shook hands with the man and received a scroll and walked back down. "Ardan Arte." Ardan repeated the process. The list went on until, "Ryu Darca."

Ryu breathed deeply and walked up. He had been forced to wear good-clothing. He was wearing the traditional black shirt, accompanied by black pants and black shoes. He walked up to the stage and could hear in the background whistling, most likely from women, and applause. He shook hands with the man, his teacher and trainer, Krikun Mard, and received the scroll and some words. "Good job Ryu. I look forward to your achievements. And, protect her well."

"With my life."

Ryu stepped down and re-entered the crowd of graduates. He opened the scroll, already knowing what it would say but still nervous.

Ryu Darca,

Your assignment is to be the bodyguard of the Royal Princess Nina Wyndia. Protect her well, and make sure she stays safe.

Signed,

Master Guard, Krikun Mard.

He closed the scroll and sighed, waiting for the ceremony to end.

When Ryu got to the throne room to meet with Nina, he was spotted by some fellow graduates. One walked up to him. "Hey Ryu, what assignment did you get? I got the outer walls." He seemed rather proud of himself for this detail and Ryu didn't know why. Outer wall duty was all about standing in front of the door looking powerful.

Ryu looked at him. "Hey Carl. I, umm, am supposed to protect Princess Nina." The man looked shocked at this.

"Protec..Protect the princess?" Ryu nodded. Carl beamed. "Well good luck Ryu! See you around!" He waved to Ryu as he walked off and Ryu sighed.

"Why is he so happy? Oh well."

Ryu walked into the throne room and walked to in front of the throne where Nina sat. He saluted her. "Ryu Darca, reporting for duty your highness."

Nina giggled. "Stand down soldier." Ryu stood at ease, causing her to giggle harder. "So you're my new bodyguard now, are you?" Ryu nodded. "Well then, you won't be able to protect me very well way over there, now will you?"

Ryu reddened slightly and shook his head. "Well then, come stand over here." Nina pointed to the space beside her. Ryu walked over and looked at her.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

Nina giggled even harder. "Completely. Now I can order you around. So my first order is, call me Nina."

"But Princes..."

"No buts. And that's an order." Ryu growled. "Now what is my name?" She asked mockingly."

Ryu lowered his voice. "Nina."

"Good boy! Now sit." Ryu growled at her again, causing her to break out in laughter. "I'm kidding! Just stand there and look pretty." Ryu harrumphed and stood up straight, causing Nina to giggle again.

The days passed by rather boringly for Ryu. All he would do was stand beside Nina, **all **day. At night his legs would be so sore he would have to just fall in bed and fall asleep with all his clothes on. Nina on the other hand seemed to be enjoying it quite a lot. She would send him meaningless tasks that could be done by servants, and according to her, done better by servants. Whenever she said this he just growled and sighed.

It was extremely repetitive until one day Ryu asked Nina a question. "Nina. Why do you just sit there all day? There must be better things you could be doing either than making yourself lazy."

"You're right! I should go out and visit some of the towns in Wyndia country!"

"I never said..."

"We'll leave in the morning."

"But I just asked if..."

"Don't forget to get some more guards, because there are lots of things out there."

"But I.."

"Get whoever you need and tell them we're leaving in the morning." She waved her hand dismissing him, causing him to sigh.

"Yes, your majesty."

Ryu got Damien, Ardan, Carl, and six other guards. He collected his steel armor, his weapons, and a camping set and layed them by his door. When everything was ready, he layed on his bed and stared at the ceiling.

Ryu wondered what would be happening to him in the future. He wouldn't be Nina's bodyguard forever and when he wasn't, what would happen? Would he become a soldier? Would he become a trainer? Would he become a royal advisor or something of the sort? Ryu wondered all this as his eyes closed and he rolled of to sleep.

The next morning Ryu and the others left Wyndia to 'visit all of Wyndia's people'. Ryu knew better. Nina just wanted out of the castle and away from all her duties. She had always been way too carefree, even when she was a child. He wondered how long the 'visit' would last for. Would they be gone for a month? Two months? He decided to go ask Nina.

Ryu approached Nina who was walking in the middle of a circle of the guards. When he got to beside her, he just walked beside her for a bit before striking a conversaion. "Hey Nina?"

Nina looked at him. "Yes? What do you wish to know?"

"What exactly are we doing?" Nina giggled. "Don't laugh. We just left Wyndia capitol on a 'visit' to all the towns in Wyndia country, and I know that is not your real reason."

Nina giggled again and looked at her blue-haired friend. "Well, if you really must know, then I just wanted to escape for a little while." Ryu grumbled, 'thought so'. "And," Ryu looked at her. "And I wanted to go on an adventure with you."

Ryu looked rather shocked but then snapped himself out of it. "We can't be going on adventures like this anymore Nina. You're the princess of Wyndia, and you have duties."

Nina grumbled. "Duties, pah. I hate my 'duties'. They're so boring and I never get to do anything fun. I kind of wish we could go on a long adventure like the one's we talked about going on when we were kids. It would be a lot better than my, 'duties.'" Nina looked away from him and he sighed.

"Whatever." He looked in the horizon, there was a forest coming closer to them and he signaled the others. "There is a forest about half an hour walk from here, once we get there, we'll make camp for the night then in the morning continue." He thought he heard some sighs of reliefs followed by 'finally, we've been walking forever.' Ryu glared at the place he believed the sound to have come from and then shrugged.

When they got into the forest, they stopped in a clearing right beside the entrance. They began to set up camp and soon there were five tents up and a fire blazing in the middle. A few of the guards then went into the forest and returned an hour later with two boars and a small deer. They brought them over to the fire and soon the boar was roasting pleasantly over it.

Ryu sat away from the others thinking. The whole time they had been in the forest, they had heard no sounds or noises which itself was odd. He occasionally saw movement out of the corner of his eye but could never hear any sounds. He wondered to himself if they were being watched by some silent creatures, or, if someone was waiting for their guard to be down and then attack them.

Ryu watched the forest in the corner of his eye while watching his companions. Damien was talking to a few of the other guards while Ardan was talking to Nina and Carl and the other guards were watching the boar cook with hunger-filled eyes. He stifled a chuckle when he finally heard the first sound. It was just a small snapping of twigs but in Ryu's mind it was like a herd of elephants. He drew his bow and shot at the place the noise was, resulting in a yelp of pain. After the yelp was heard, voices were heard, "they shot him! The time of attack is now!"

Fourteen men jumped from the trees and attacked the guards. Two men came at Ryu so he replaced his bow and unsheathed his sword. He stood at the ready as the two men came at him. They were wearing red leather armor and red masks. The one had an axe while the other wielded a sword. They charged at him at the smae time so Ryu was easily able to get away by jumping over them. He turned in the air and brought his sword down on the axe-wielder. It sliced into his shoulder, causing the man to drop the axe. Ryu pushed the man with his feet, removing his sword and sending Ryu flying back into the air. He landed with his feet and left hand sliding on the ground. He quickly recovered and charged at the sword-wielder. The man blocked Ryu's downwards slash and quickly attempted a thrust that was hit away by Ryu's sword. Ryu then began relentlessly berating the man with slashes, swipes and thrusts, causing many wounds to open on the man's torso. Knowing he was getting tired, Ryu stopped his attacks and jumped back. The man turned from confusion to a malicious grin spreading over his lips. He charged Ryu which was what he had been waiting for. He rolled under the man's thrust and stabbed his sword upwards, causing the blade to slide into the man's chest. The man had a look of utter confusion as he breathed his last breath.

Ryu pulled his sword out of the man and glanced down. He had never killed a man before and now he had killed two, possibly three. His breathing quickened and he felt like he was going to be sick but was thrown out of his anguish as a scream pierced the night. It was Nina.

Ryu ran as fast as he could in his slightly tired state. He ran into the camp to see all but Damien, Ardan, and Carl alive, protecting Nina. Ardan sported a nasty wound on his shoulder that bled profusely, making it hard to hold his spear. Damien seemed even more tired than Ryu and Carl's right hand was gone. He was holding his short sword in his left akwardly. Ryu looked at Nina and saw she was okay but extremely shaken up. She looked to be crying but he couldn't tell completely.

He then looked at their assailants and saw five men approaching them. Two had swords, one had an axe, one had a spear, and the other had a staff that looked like it had a head on the top. He knew that his friends would not be able to kill them all so he pushed aside the fear and pain and charged at the men. He yelled a fierce battle cry and lopped off the head of a surprised sword-wielding assailant. He then rolled forward and stabbed the axe-wielder in the chest, causing him to drop his axe which Ryu picked up and swung, connecting it to the man's chest, nearly cutting him in half.

Ryu then quickly ducked under the spears thrust. He grabbed the shaft of the spear and brought his sword down on it, cutting it in half. He grabbed the bladed end that had falen and threw it through the head of the man. He turned to see his head nearly taken off by a swing of the broad sword the other man carried. He ducked just in time, and hit the blade upwards with his own. He knocked the sword away, causing it to be ripped out of the man's hands and fall into the ground. Ryu quickly thrust his sword through the man's chest, stabbing into his heart. He pulled his sword out of the man and turned to the last one. The man began chanting a spell. "CYCLONE!" A large wind appeared and buffeted Ryu, knocking him off his feet.

He shakily got up only to be hit by another wind. As he fell, he heard Nina gasp. He heard her begin to chant then yell out, "FLARE!" Ryu looked up to see the man surrounded by flames. The man let out a terrifying scream as he was burned alive.

Ryu stood up and looked to his friends. They seemed okay aside from the wounds they had received. They put their weapons away and Damien started to walk to Ryu with a smile on his face. "Thanks man, I dont..." At that moment, arrows rained down on them like rain. Arrows jutted themselves into Damien, Ardan and Carl, making them release a death scream that shattered the newly-acquired silence. Ryu himself got several arrows to his chest but were they mostly stopped by his armor. None seemed to touch Nina.

When the arrows stopped, Ryu looked over to see Nina sobbing. He walked over to her, noticing the pain shoot through his body as he did so. He put his arm around her shoulder and placed his other arm under her legs and lifter her up. She threw her arms around him and sobbed into his shoulder. "Ryu! Ryu, they are all dead! They're dead. Just like my mom! And, I just killed someone! I KILLED someone! Oh why do people have to die? WHY?" She demanded of him.

"Because they must. Without death there would not be enough food, or space, and people would be in constant agony of wounds they should have died from, or from the loss of a loved one, or from a sickness that leaves them forever ill, or even because they are old. I know sometimes it does not seem fair that the ones we love must die, but we can't change these things. Only the gods can. We must just live our life as best as we can." He looked at her sobbing form, her beautiful, sobbing form. "Even if they have died Nina. Do not worry. For we still have each other and I will not leave you until we are old and grey." Nina nodded and her sobbings ceased.

She looked up at him with tears still in her eyes. "Ryu? Why do you think those men tried to kill us? And where are the others that shot the arrows?"

Ryu thought he knew why they had attacked them. What he believed they were after lay in his arms. "I do not know," he lied. "But we will find out. And for the archers, I believe they lie in wait for us to drop our guard once again. But do not worry, I will protect you, so sleep and dream peacefully." Nina nodded but was already falling asleep. In a matter of seconds, she was asleep in his arms.

Ryu looked to the forest where he knew the men waited, following, ever ready to rain down death as easily as a heavy rain washes away a drought. With ever vigilance and many arrows.

* * *

So what do you think? Please R&R. The next chapter should be up soon. 

Oni Tsubasa


	4. Forest Ambush and New Allies

The Last of the Dragons

Chapter 3: Forest Ambush and New Allies

She walked through the forest, trailing the men. They were following two people, a man and a woman. The man carried a long sword and a bow who carried the woman who carried a wooden staff. The man had shafts of arrows sticking out of his steel armor while the woman had a simple yet elegant dress on. The man had shoulder-length blue hair and was extremely handsome while the woman had long blonde hair and, she gasped, wings! The woman was a Wyndian. The man must have been her traveling companion or even her bodyguard, which would make the woman rather important, which might explain why the men in red were following them. The man seemed aware that they were following them but was smart enough to never glance back or look in the forest for any of them. 'He's good,' the woman thought. 'He's good and handsome.' A smile appeared on her lips. 'Let's watch how this turns out, and if he needs it, I'll help him.' So she continued following them.

* * *

Ryu noticed another pair of feet running through the forest. Either it was backup for the red men or the person was following the red men. The person was very stealthy, even more so then the red men, but there was so much sticks and old leaves that the person had no choice but to step on them. Aside from this new person, Ryu counted six other pairs of feet. One was limping slightly more than the others, meaning it might have been the person who Ryu had shot. Ryu knew he had to get it all over with so he stopped in a small clearing and put Nina down, waking her up. "We need to stop, I'm getting tired." It was a downright lie. Ryu felt perfectly fine. Nina nodded, not knowing the men were following them. "We'll just rest here for a few hours then get going again. Nina nodded and fell asleep again in seconds. Ryu closed his eyes and waited for the first arrow.

A loud twanging of a bow was heard and Ryu quickly rolled out of it's path. He pulled out his own bow and shot to the location the arrow had come from. A yelp of pain was heard followed by a thump on the ground. He restrung his bow and waited until he heard a small cracking noise and he let his second arrow fly, leading to a curse of pain followed by another thump.

Now the archers were getting worried, they decided to end it all and let all their arrows fly. This was exactly what Ryu wanted though so he waited until the last possible second and rolled out of the way. He put an arrow into his bow and let it loose to have it hit it's target in the shoulder. He shot another arrow taking down another man. The red men were getting anxious again so the one archer put his bow down and began to chant words of magic. The other man put his bow down and pulled out a scimitar, a very curved sword. He leapt out of the forest into the clearing and charged at Ryu.

Ryu pulled out his own sword and stood in a defensive position, with his blade in front of him and his legs apart for quick movement. When the man got to him he parried his thrust and sent his own thrust in. The man parried it and slashed at Ryu, causing him to have to leap out of the way. Ryu then slashed and stabbed at the man until he felt the blade hit flesh. The man cried out in pain. Ryu again slashed at the same place, causing the wound to open up and bleed profusely. The man dropped his blade and Ryu, playing the part of his executioner, lopped off his head.

Ryu turned to the last man who quickly chanted the last of the words and yelled out, "FROST!" Hundreds of pieces of ice struck Ryu, causing him to drop his sword in pain. The man laughed victoriously as Ryu blacked out after a rather large chunk of ice hit him in the face

* * *

She watched as the blue-haired man took out all but one of the men who used magic to knock him out. The woman still hadn't woken up so she decided to go help the man. She pulled out her daggers and leapt at the cocky magic-user. She sliced through him like slicing through warm butter and all the man could do was look in shock as his body was cut in two.

She walked over to the blue-haired man and bent down. She gazed into his face. "Handsome." All of a sudden someone stirring made her stand up and bring her hand to one of her daggers. It was just the Wyndian.

* * *

Nina sat up and looked around rather sleepily. "Ryu?" She asked through a yawn. "Where are you?" Nina looked over to see a human woman with long brown hair and blue eyes, wearing low-cut green hunting clothing to blend in to the forest, standing over an unconcious Ryu with a dagger out. She gasped. " Ge..Get away from Ryu! If you don't, I..I'll be forced to hurt you." The woman laughed mockingly.

"Oh really? Well where were you when this, Ryu was it? Took out five armed men while you were sleeping?"

"Well you kind of just answered the question yourself." Nina replied mockingly.

The woman realised she had and glared at Nina. "Shut up! You were asleep while I watched Ryu kill five men then get knocked unconcious by a chunk of ice! You don't seem to be a very good girlfriend if you don't even care for the well-being of your boyfriend."

Nina's face reddened. "He..He's not my boy.. Boyfriend... He's my.."

"He's not?" The woman asked curiously. "Well then I guess I can make him mine, hehe."

"Don't even dare!" Nina yelled angrily.

"You said he's not your boyfriend so why should you care?"

Nina's face reddened more. "Well that's because... Umm... Because.."

"Yes? I'm waiting." The woman asked impatiently.

"Because he's my best friend and.. He's my bodyguard."

"Your bodyguard and best friend? Wouldn't it be saddening if he died while protecting you then?" Nina looked down. "So I think he's better off with me." Nina glared at her angrily. "Who are you anyway?"

Nina looked rather taken back by the question. "I'm Nina. Princess Nina of Wyndia."

Now it was the woman's turn to look surprised. "Princess Nina! Well this is interesting. And he's your royal bodyguard eh? He's to cute to be your bodyguard so I'll take him with me." She hoisted Ryu up on her shoulders only to be blocked by Nina. "Get out of my way Princess."

"No. Leave Ryu alone. Or, come with us, **until **Ryu gets better when he can decide what to do with you."

"Why are you letting me join?"

"One, because I'm guessing you can fight well, seeing as there are six men on the ground but you said Ryu only took out five. Two, because if I didn't you'd probably end up following us anyway. And three," Nina looked at Ryu, "because Ryu gets flustered enough around just me, so it would be hilarious to see what he would do around two women." She giggled.

"You're an evil person," the woman replied. "Well, I accept."

Nina stopped giggling and looked at her. "Really? Okay then. Umm.. Who are you?"

The woman laughed. " My name is Karina Karth, nice to meet you." Karina stuck out her hand which Nina took and shook.

"I am Nina Wyndia, and this," she pointed at Ryu, "is Ryu Darca, who is in for an interesting surprise when he wakes up." She giggled again.

"Yes he is." Karina smiled mischieviously at Ryu. "Yes he is."

* * *

Ryu ran through the dark forest as fast as he could, only occasionally looking over his back to see if what was following him was getting closer. He looked forward and saw four large creatures, one red, one blue, one yellow and one green. He stopped running and looked behind him only to see another giant creature, larger than the others, only it was gold and made his heart feel at peace. The creature roared but somehow Ryu understood. 'Ryu! Join me and we shall fulfill our destiny!' It was a deep booming voice that made Ryu want to believe.

Ryu began walking towards the creature only to hear a voice calling to him. It was feminine. "Ryu! Ryu! Ryu wake up! RYU!"

* * *

Ryu sat up in the midst of Nina yelling at him. When she was done she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, sucking in air for another yell. "I'm up!" She stopped and looked at him. "I'm up and I might not be able to hear for awhile either."

Nina was about to giggle when she was pushed out of the way by a busty brown haired woman. She bent down and smiled at him seductively. "Well hello there sugar, glad you're awake."

Ryu felt his face getting hot and he began to stutter, "umm... Well that's.. umm.. good? Umm... who are... are you?

The woman looked kind of embarassed. "Why how stupid of me! I am Karina Karth, sword-for-hire at your service."

Ryu looked to Nina who had just stood up and was glaring at Karina. "Who.."

Nina sighed. "She saved you after you were knocked unconcious by the mage. She then helped me bring you here where we've been waiting for you to wake up."

Ryu turned to say thanks to Karina only to see her cleavage right in front of his face. His face went bright red . "Umm... Thank-you.. very much... umm... I.. I think we should go now." He tried to stand up only to be pushed back down by Karina.

"I don't think so. You still need to rest. And besides, once you get better, we can have a little, fun." She said the last word seductively.

Ryu could feel his heart begin to beat ever faster until Nina pushed her off him. "get off of him. He's not going to get any rest with you there." She turned to Ryu. "Now get some rest and we'll leave in the morning"

Ryu nodded and fell into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

When he woke up in the morning, Ryu noticed Nina was still asleep and Karina wasn't there. He also noticed his clothes had been changed which caused him to redden slightly at the thought of the girls stripping him and seeing him naked. He was now in a green coat, with a brown leather armor on underneath, green pants and green leather shoes. He didn't even want to think of why Karina had these clothes that were obviously for men.

He decided to take a good look at his surroundings. He was in a small room in a wooden cabin that was lined with a small dresser, a bed he was currently residing in, a chair, a door to the left of the bed, and a window straight ahead that gave him a good look of the outside. He looked through it and noticed they were still in the forest. Sighing, he turned to the chair and noticed for the first time, a person sitting in it, sleeping soundly. He walked over to the chair and saw Nina sleeping in what looked like a rather uncomfortable position. He smiled and lifted his friend and put her in the now empty bed.

He walked out of the door to be struck by an astounding array of aromas. He looked into the kitchen to the ight of the bedroom and noticed Karina making breakfast while humming a little tune. It was a beautiful tune that carried over the sounds of the boiling and steaming. When he stopped to listen, she noticed his presence and turned to face him. She stopped humming and smiled. "Good morning."

He smiled back at her. "Good morning. Breakfast smells great by the way. What is it?"

Her smile widened. "Just a little family recipe I decided to make to get us started on our little journey."

He gave her a confused look. "Our?"

"Yes. Didn't the princess tell you? I'm coming with you to wherever you're going."

He gazed at her sternly, quickly reverting to his formal way of speaking. "I'm afraid I can't do that milady, for I would not like to get you hurt, and I have a feeling that we are going to have more battles, which will be much harder than the last one."

"Well all the more reason to let me join you then. It looks like you could use some help in fighting. Your princess seems to be only to be able to cast magic." Ryu had no rebuttal for this, although he did attempt to think of one. He hung his head in defeat.

"As you wish, but know there will be much danger and I will not always be able to protect you."

At this Karina laughed. "Do not worry, sugar, I can handle myself. Breakfast is ready, would you like some?" Ryu nodded as his stomach rumbled. She laughed again. "Well take a seat." She pointed to the table. "I'll bring out the food."

Ryu took a seat and clearly took a look at the house. He was sitting at a large table with several seats all around. Karina was in the kitchen off to the right and the door to outside was to the left of the table. Ryu saw it was a rather small cabin meaning Karina lived alone, for there was only one bedroom with one bed in it.

Karina came over and laid out a pot of stew and two bowls in front of Ryu. She took the seat beside him and grabbed a bowl for herself and went to put some stew in it. Since she was beside him, and the stew was in front of him, she had to lean over him to get to it, putting her curves right in front of his face, causing his face to redden. She looked over at him in mid-lean and smiled. "Well I'm sorry, I'll be done in a minute." She finished filling her bowl and sat back down making his face de-redden.

They ate in silence until Nina walked out of the room yawning. "Good morning both of you." She looked at the two of them. Ryu was looking at her and Karina just continued eating.

"Good morning, Nina." Ryu replied. "Have a good sleep?"

Nina shrugged. "The falling asleep in the chair was rather uncomfortable but the bed was nice."

"That's good. Come, have a seat and eat something, we never did get to eat that boar." Nina nodded and took a seat on the other side of Ryu. She grabbed a bowl and helped herself to some stew. When she swallowed the stew, she smiled from the taste with a look of adoration on her face.

"This stew is so good! It's better than the stew the cooks at the castle make! Karina, did you make this?" Karina nodded. "If you can make more food like this than you have to come along with us." She looked to Ryu. "Not only can she fight, but she cooks amazingly as well! We have to let her come with us."

Ryu smiled and thought. 'Good old Nina, she always did love the delicious foods. But I do agree with her, this food is amazing.' "She's already coming, I already said okay."

Nina smiled. "Okay then, hey, when can we leave?"

Ryu thought about it. "Hmm. We need to pack some things, but still, we'll be leaving this afternoon most likely."

Karina looked at him. "There is some traveling gear outside, go get it and me and Nina will collect some cooking supplies and tools." Ryu nodded.

Ryu left after the meal to collect the gear while Nina and Karina cleared off the table then began grabbing dried food, fruits, pots and pans, among other things. When they had collected all the things, Karina noticed Ryu had not returned yet so she turned to her female companion. "Hey Nina? What is going on between you and Ryu?"

Nina nearly tripped and dropped the pots she was carrying."What? Why would you ask something like that?"

"Well you two seem very close and I can tell that you like him, so why don't you, go for it?"

Nina's face reddened. "Go for it?" Karina nodded. "Well for one, he's my best friend, and I wouldn't want to lose that, and for another..." She paused causing Karina to tap her foot impatiently.

"Nina, answer this, do you, or do you not like Ryu?"

"Well of course I like Ryu. How could you not? He's nice, caring, brave, handsome.." Her face reddened slightly.

"You're not answering my question completely. Do you, like like Ryu?"

"Yeesh! I feel like I'm nine years old and being asked if I have a crush on a boy."

"Nina, stop and answer the question. Do you, like Ryu?"

Nina's face reddened. "Yes. Okay! Yes, I like Ryu, but the thing is, nothing can ever happen between us because I'm a princess, and he's..."

"Your bodyguard? Best friend? Commoner?"

"He's a... nobody. My father would never let me marry someone like him! He has no status and I have to marry into royalty or at least high nobility. Even if I do like him, nothing can ever happen because he has no status. My father would frown upon it, even if he's known Ryu since he was born, the whole kingdom would frown upon it, and then things would happen. No, becasue I like him, maybe as more than a friend, I can't do this, we never can be more than friends, even if I wanted to," Nina sighed. "Nothing can ever become of us. I wish it could, but, it can't. If only he was a noble, or a prince, then, "she sighed again. "I don't know what then."

Karina listened to all of this without an emotion on her face. When Nina was finished, she put her arm around the girl's shoulders and hugged her slightly. "I feel sorry for all of this, including asking you, but, you needed to come into reality of what you feel for him. Now, once you get back, you won't have to worry about what could have happened, for you just answered it yourself." Nina put her head on the other woman's shoulder and cried silently while Karina gently patted her.

* * *

Ryu slumped down against the cabin. He had heard the whole coversation and he just sighed. He had already known that nothing could come from the either of them but this now proved it. He put away his emotions and stood up and walked to the door. He opened it slowly, giving the two women time to let go of each other and Nina time to wipe away her tears.

He walked in and put his weapons and pack on the table. "Come, on everything's ready we can leave anytime." Nina and Karina just nodded.

They had everything packed up and soon everyone was carrying something. Nina had the lightest pack, Karina had the next heaviest, and Ryu had the heaviest, which caused him to look slightly red in the face when he lifted it up. Even for him, someone who trained day after day, hour after hour, it was extremely heavy. And he wasn't even carrying the tent! 'Holy.. What do they have in this thing?' Ryu sighed and lifted the pack higher onto his back whick nearly made him fall backwards. The girls just laughed as he struggeled to keep his balance. He regained it and sighed again. "Hey Nina?" Nina looked at him. "Where are we going anyway?"

Nina considered her choices for a minute before replying. "Well, how about we go to Winlan? That way we can go to a town and still go on our little adventure." Karina raised her eyebrow. "Well, we first came to the forest to quickly go to the towns in Wyndia. For, umm... Political reasons." Ryu snorted but she ignored him. "We were going through the forest with some more guards when we were ambushed and... And they were all killed." Her voice dropped in volume.

Karina looked at her companion soothingly. " Don't worry about it. They may be gone, but they're not forgotten." Nina nodded but Ryu looked more downcast. Nina walked ahead faster and Karina decided to ask Ryu something that had been annoying her for some time now. She looked to Ryu. "Do you have any idea why those men were after you in the first place?"

Ryu looked at her and nodded. He motioned his head to Nina who was farther up on the path. Realization washed over Karina's face and she walked closer to him, and spoke in a whisper. "If they captured the princess of Wyndia then they would definitely have some oppurtunities huh?" Ryu nodded. "Well then, we'll have to watch the surrounding areas carefully then, to make sure we don't get attacked huh?" Ryu nodded again. "What I don't get from your story is why the archers didn't attack when their comrades were getting killed. They would have had the perfect chance to kill you and take the princess. I wonder why they waited."

Ryu pondered this for a moment. "Well, it could be a multitude of things. They could have thought that their comrades could have taken care of us, or they could have just gotten there, or, they were under direct orders not to and then finish us off when we were weakened. If the last one is the reason then you still have to ask yourself why someone would say that." Ryu stopped talking and smiled. "Too bad we can't really ask any of archers before we killed them all." Karina smiled as well.

"Ya, that could have helped." She chuckled. "Not the best planning on our parts." Ryu chuckled as well.

By this time Nina had gotten rather far ahead and saw the light from the exit of the dark forest. She turned around and saw the two way back and yelled at them. "COME ON! WE'RE NEARLY AT THE END! HURRY UP!"

Ryu looked to Karina. "Well, whatever the reasons, I'm sure all our questions will be answered in due time." Karina nodded and they ran off to an impatient Nina. And as Ryu stared at the sun shining through the trees he thought. 'Yes, I'm sure we will aquire all our answers for the attack, and I shall receive my answers on the dream.'

* * *

Well? What do you think? R&R pls. 

Oni Tsubasa


	5. The Tower of Blue

The Last of the Dragons

Chapter 4: HOLY FUCK ITS BEEN 6 YEARS

AN: So.. yeah... Hi... How's it going... DON'T LOOK AT MEEEEEEEEEEEEE...

So, I was writing a story, as I randomly do, and actually managed to finish a chapter, and I was thinking over the past little bit of how I wanted to eventually finish this and the Hunt for the Red Pigtail. I went onto my author page today, and I saw, that the last ACTUAL story I had put up, was in freaking 2006, and that I haven't updated this story since 2005...

Yikes.

All I can really say is that it's not because I lost interest, but because for one, school sucks, and because I became addicted to READING stories, but not so much writing them. I've read a lot of fanfictions over these years, and my life has changed quite a bit. Got a girlfriend, got engaged, going to college, all that fun stuff. It's been a long time, and for anyone who's actually been waiting for this (if they still exist), then I'm really sorry.

So, to those who may or may not exist, I present:

The Last of the Dragons

Chapter 4: The Tower of Blue

* * *

They had been travelling for four days now. The first day, they had watched for every shadow, listened for every snapped branch, and smelt for any signs of life. The second day, they lowered their guards, but still remained vigilant. The third day they spent talking, talking of what life was like in the forest, or in the castle, what life was like as a princess, and what life was like as a mercenary.

And on the fourth day, they simply tried staying together.

Out of nowhere, a storm began which cut off their sight. The rain was coming down so hard and fast that it was difficult to see even ten feet in front of them. The numerous and quick flashes of lightning and cracks of thunder further hurt their ability to stay vigilant. If they were attacked now, then their enemies could easily overtake them.

Luckily, Karina knew the area where they were, so she was taking them through less heavily travelled roads. They were much less likely to be seen if they kept up their pace and stayed together, out of sight.

The only problem was that they were getting tired. It had been an unspoken promise that they would only sleep when the moon had come out, so they could see around them, and they would only sleep where it was open. It was much more difficult to hide in plain sight than it was in an area where there were many obstacles. However, that worked both ways, so someone always had to stay on watch, and since Nina simply wasn't physically up to it, the task of guard duty was broken up into two, and the lack of sleep was getting to them.

They hadn't been able to rest yet because with the path they were on, there was no open area, and the moon wasn't shining, leaving everything in perpetual darkness. In other words, they had no choice but to trek on.

The dirt road had become muddy, so travelling was difficult, especially on Ryu and Nina. Nina because of her upbringing, which mostly consisted of sitting in a chair all day, learning about something or other, and Ryu because he was both already exhausted, and because he was carrying the heaviest pack.

Karina looked back at her companions and saw that neither were going to last much longer. Nina had already misstepped twice, and Ryu's feet were moving slower and slower. If this kept up, then one of them was going to drop from exhaustion. "We need to stop!" The mercenary yelled back at the two.

"We-we can't!" Ryu panted out. "If we stop, then there's no knowing what could happen to us!"

Nina's feet slipped again, driving her to her knees. "I... I can't move my legs anymore... Ryu... Please..."

The man moved over to his best friend and grabbed her arm, pulling her up. "Just... A bit further... We need to keep moving..."

Karina saw it first.

One of the reasons this road was not heavily travelled was because of its dangers. It was essentially between two mountain-sides, one which sloped downwards onto the trail, and another that sloped downwards off the trail. She hadn't expected it to begin raining. If she had known it was going to rain, then she would have taken the other side around, even knowing it would have left them more open.

And that was because this path had a tendency for mudslides.

The lightning first illuminated it, and the mudslide was visible. It was kareening down the mountain towards them, and she knew that they had to move now, or else they might not survive.

"MUDSLIDE! DROP THE PACKS, RYU, GRAB NINA AND RUN!"

They immediately did as they were told, throwing their packs behind them. Ryu lifted the princess in his arms and began running towards Karina, who dove behind a large outcropping which would take the brunt of the mudslide, and should keep them safe.

When she looked back though, she knew Ryu wasn't going to make it.

The mud blasted over top of the outcropping, and her vision was taken from her as she huddled down as far as she could, before she heard it... It was unlike anything she had ever heard before, and it was audible even above the rushing mud, the storming rain, and the breaking thunder.

A roar.

* * *

Hello little one.

"Who... Who's there..."

I am someone who has been watching you for many years.

"Me...?"

You are the fifth. The last of the fifth. Your fate is different from the four though. You, you are destined for the Gold.

"The Gold...?"

Yes, the Gold. Now, I believe it is time for you to wake up little one.

"What? But what do you-"

...p!

W..e..p!

wake up!

"Who... Is that?"

The one who has been waiting for you, Kaiser.

WAKE UP!

* * *

Ryu's eyes flew open, and he sat up straight. Suddenly, pain shot through his chest. He looked down, and there was mop of blonde hair on his stomach, crying into his body.

The girl jumped up as well, sadness mixing into relief on her face.

"RYU! You're alive!"

The fog that had filled his mind began to fade. "Ni...na?"

Suddenly, the princess threw her arms around him, pushing him back into the ground.

"You wouldn't wake up and-and I thought you were dead! There was blood, so much blood, and I-I didn't know what to do!" Nina cried into his chest, pushing her face into the blood that was flowing from it.

It took the royal guard a few seconds to realize what had happened. The day before, they had been travelling on the road, and it was raining... And there was a mudslide! He grabbed Nina, running towards Karina, but he didn't move fast enough... And then... And then...?

What happened after that?

Ryu finally took a good look where he was. The mudslide had took them to a riverbed. There was a small river flowing beside them, most likely higher than it was normally after the heavy rainfall. The water wasn't even dirty. It was amazing what nature could do, and how quickly nature could simply reverse the damage done.

He looked down at his chest. There was blood coming from a fair sized hole. It was jagged and uneven, so it was likely caused by a rock or something similar. Where then was the rock? "Nina, did you clean the wound?"

She shook her head on his chest. "I don't know what caused it. It was like that when I woke up, and then I tried waking you up, but you wouldn't-" He cut her off before she started crying again.

"Nina, listen very closely to me. I need you to rip up my shirt. Tear it into small strips, cut it with my knife or sword if you have to. Then, go clean it in the river, but try not to use too dirty of water. We're going to need to wrap this so it doesn't get infected. Then, we need to get to a town where we can get someone to take a look at it. Can you do this for me? Do you think you can do this?"

She nodded into his chest after a second, then did as he told. Soon enough, he was wrapped up and they began walking.

It wasn't until after they began walking that the adrenaline seemed to finally leave the man, and he realized, with an incredibly red face, that his arm was squished into her chest. He tried moving it slowly, but she would have none of it. It seemed like she was thinking that if he left her, he'd die or something.

'Oh god it's ! Training with teacher, training with teacher, having a nice warm bath after training, having a nice warm bath, her smooth skin on my back-! Master in his underwear, MASTERINHISUNDERWEAR!'

It was going to be a LONG trip.

* * *

Later that day, Karina finally found some tracks. There was blood, but there were only two, right below where they most likely fell. They were leading in the same direction as they had been originally going, so all she could do was follow them.

"Be safe you two..." The way they were going was in the same direction as... Blue Dragon Tower.

* * *

The first bulding they came across was an enormous blue tower. They knocked on the door, but there was no answer, so they walked inside.

The first floor had nobody on it, so they made their way to the stairs. The second floor was an enormous corridor, filled with dozens of doors.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" Those were the first words they heard from anyone inside the tower, so the Princess and her Guard went over in the direction of the sound.

"We were starting to wonder the same thing." Ryu called out. "Where are you?"

"I'm in the dungeon! It's the last room on the left!"

"Dungeon?" Nina wondered out loud. "Why is there a dungeon?"

Her guard shook his head. "I don't know, but lets be careful. Who knows WHY this person is in the dungeon."

The two made their way into the dungeon room, but calling it a dungeon wouldn't do a normal dungeon justice. The dungeon at Wyndia was a large area, with over twenty cells, each cell populated with a single small bed and a wash area. This room was itself a single cell, with nothing but a large slab of stone at the side.

Inside the cell was a man far too large in proportion to the rest of the room. His skin was grey armadillo-like-man. Ryu had never met one before, but the man was surely of the Shell Clan, a tribe known for their armadillo-looks. The man was easily over 7 feet tall, and was practically twice the size of the young guard. "Are you the one who was calling for us?" Ryu asked, almost rhetorically. After all, who else could it have been?

The man nodded. "Yeah, I've been locked in here for almost a week now, and I was starting to think I was gonna die in here. But then I heard someone crashing around downstairs. The name's Dhan, what's yours?"

Nina perked up. "I'm Nina, and this is Ryu. There's another girl with us too. Her name is Karina, but we got separated after a huge mudslide."

Dhan nodded again. "Well, its nice to meet you, Ryu, Nina. Now, what are you doing here in this Blue Dragon Tower? Looking for the bastard who runs the place like I was?"

"'Blue Dragon Tower'? I've never even heard of that before... And who runs it?" Ryu asked, wondering what kind of place they had come to. If there was someone who was a danger to Nina...

Sighing, the armadillo-man began. "This was once the tower belonging to the lord of this land. He was as kind as could be expected, but he was fair enough. But then, one day, some bastards in red killed him and took over. They started heavily taxing the people, and if they couldn't pay, took them away to their slave camps where they made them work till they dropped dead."

Nina gasped and Ryu's fist clenched. "Tha-that's horrible..." The princess muttered.

"Aye, and that's not the worst of it. If they were normal people then a revolt would have been expected, but the bastard running this tower now is a Dragon."

Dragon.

The word pinged inside Ryu's head. There was once a clan of dragons who were named the most powerful tribe on the entire continent. Then, almost like they had never existed, they simply vanished.

If the person who ran this tower was a Dragon, and was aligned with the men in red...

Things could get real ugly, real fast.

"I came to this tower to try to kill the bastard, but I was taken prisoner and thrown in here until the next caravan comes for the newest slaves."

"First things first, we need to get you out of there."

Ryu took his sword and, with all his strength, pried open the door, helped along by Dhan pushing. The door creaked loudly before breaking open, letting the man free.

"We need to get the hell out of here." Ryu told his companions. The other two nodded and they began creeping out of the dungeon room.

But a voice stopped them as soon as they were over the threshold. "Well well well, what do we have here? The missing princess Nina, the slave, and, what's this? The guard that killed so many of my men."

Ignoring Dhan's shock and whisper of 'Princess?', Ryu turned to the voice. There, in the middle of the corridor, was a man wearing a blue robe, with red hair that had a shock of blue through it. "I guess you're the master of this tower then?" The royal guard asked, his hand slowly moving towards his sword.

"Yes, yes I am. And you've walked right into my grasp. How perfect for me that you would so willingly come here. Now, give me the princess and I won't kill you, but I'm sure the slave work will!" The Dragon-man leant his head back and laughed insanely.

'This bastard... There's no way he's getting Nina!' Ryu moved backwards slowly until he was in front of Nina, Dhan shortly behind her. "Dhan... Take Nina and run. I'll hold him off until you can get away and then follow after you." The blue-haired man whispered.

"But if you do that, then you're practically asking to die!" Dhan whispered back to Ryu.

"I'll be fine. In this small area, there's no way he could become something as large as a Dragon, right?" Dhan hesitantly nodded. That was as good a guess as any. Who knew how large a Dragon could actually be?

Ryu turned to the Dragon-man. "I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I'll have to decline your _sincere_ request. DHAN, NOW!"

The Shell Clan member grabbed Nina around the waist and ran backwards, moving into the door on the opposite side of the room he had been locked up. He moved towards the window, and heedless of Nina's scream, dove through the window, wrapping him and the girl up in his thick skin.

The Dragon-man screamed, but in fury and not terror. "HOW DARE YOU! YOU WILL DIE LIKE THE DOG YOU ARE! THIS AOI OF THE RED DESIRE CLAN WILL DESTROY YOU!"

Then, before Ryu's eyes, the man... Changed. His body seemed to grow outwards, and in the place of where there was once a man, emerged a Dragon. It didn't seem possible, but the corridor was just big enough for the Dragon to fit. But there was no more time for reflection as the beast breathed ice.

Ryu leapt out of the way of the freezing breath, hitting against a wall. Originally, Ryu thought the man wouldn't be able to change in account of the corridor being, hopefully, too small for a Dragon. But the corridor WAS large enough, and it made it much more difficult to dodge, as Ryu had only way to go. Backwards.

And as he and his companions had come out of the last room on the left, there wasn't much room to move back either.

Which meant, the only thing Ryu could do was make a stand, and hopefully strike the beast hard enough to incapacitate him for a time.

Nina's guard brandished his sword and, as soon as the Dragon breathed another torrent of ice, moved. He rushed forward, beneath the frost, and came under the belly of the beast. With his sword in hand, he thrust upwards with as much strength in his body as he could, piercing into the Dragon's body.

But the cut was too shallow. Ryu's sword was wrenched from his fingers when the beast roared in pain and his body was thrown to the ground. Stars flashed through his head as his skull smashed against the ground, and his breath was torn from his lungs.

The Dragon leered overhead ominously as Ryu's thoughts began to darken, leaving only a few words.

Fight.

Kill.

Fight.

Kill.

Fight. Kill.

FIGHT. KILL.

FIGHT KILL FIGHT KILL FIGHT KILL FIGHT KILL FIGHT KILL!

The Dragon stopped when he saw a golden aura swimming around the blue-haired man. Could it be... The fifth?

Ryu's hands stretched outwards, his nails pointing and sharpening. "DIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

And as Ryu's clawed hand pierced into the heart of Aoi, he let out a single last roar, heard and understood by only three others. *The fifth, is alive*.

* * *

And this seems like a good place to stop. This is honestly, nothing like the original of this chapter went. Originally, Ryu's pack forced him into the mud and the girls forgot about him, where he was found by Dhan (not yet named), went to the tower, and most likely fought and killed a sorcerer or something, kinda, Breath of Fire 1 style.

But as I was writing this (in a single day no less), it became this, and I like this more.

Sure, the battle with the dragon was kind of anticlimactic, but I liked how it went. It was either Ryu ripping out his heart or piercing it with Dragon-induced strength, but either way this was more or less Ryu's first Dragon act. There was the mudslide thing too, but that was inspired by Breath of Fire 3 where Ryu becomes the Defender dragon to save Nina when they're rolling down the hill.

Well, let me know what you all thought, and until next time (which will definitely be less than six years), enjoy!

-Oni Tsubasa


End file.
